With its smart lending, China has made countless developing countries economically and politically dependent on itself. The “Krone” explains how Beijing’s hard debt regime subjugates half the world and drives it into the debt trap.
Ports, highways, multinational rail connections, pipelines. Since 2013, China has been investing heavily in developing countries as part of its massive Belt and Road Initiative, better known as the “New Silk Road”. When it comes to lending for these Beijing co-financed infrastructure projects, the wallet is very easy. Especially in the “Global South” – in other words: in Africa as well as in Central and Southeast Asia – the People’s Republic appears to be a generous lender. Today, under President Xi Jinping, China is the world’s largest individual creditor, currently lending the country $180 billion.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
